variants
also peck order
as in hierarchy
the way in which people or things in a group or organization are placed in a series of levels with different importance or status
As an assistant manager, he was pretty low in the company's pecking order.
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Recent Examples of pecking order
After switching places in the pecking order multiple times during the week following the election, Tordillos emerged with a slim six-vote advantage, triggering an automatic recount held last Thursday that confirmed the results.
—
Devan Patel, Mercury News, 28 Apr. 2025
Endrick, with one goal in La Liga and another in Europe, lags behind other talents in the pecking order.
—Henry Flynn, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Navarro’s place in the pecking order came under further scrutiny when Elon Musk, the billionaire adviser to the president, publicly attacked him on social media.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 19 Apr. 2025
Denver would sink to the bottom of the pecking order due to its 0-4 record against Minnesota this season.
—Matt Schubert, Denver Post, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pecking order
Devan Patel, Mercury News, 28 Apr. 2025
Endrick, with one goal in La Liga and another in Europe, lags behind other talents in the pecking order.
—Henry Flynn, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Navarro’s place in the pecking order came under further scrutiny when Elon Musk, the billionaire adviser to the president, publicly attacked him on social media.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 19 Apr. 2025
Denver would sink to the bottom of the pecking order due to its 0-4 record against Minnesota this season.
—Matt Schubert, Denver Post, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pecking order
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pecking order
Noun
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In the 20-team Premier League, in which the bottom three teams are unceremoniously relegated to a lower division in English soccer’s hierarchy, Spurs sit 17th with one game left.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
21 May 2025
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However, David’s representatives held talks with West Ham’s hierarchy earlier this year and their interest has been long-standing, dating back to January 2021.—
Andy Jones,
New York Times,
21 May 2025
Noun
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European countries dominate global rankings of healthcare systems characterized by universal access and defining health as a right rather than a commodity.—
RSM Discovery,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
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The ranking of those soccer leagues is determined by a formula that calculates how well teams from that league performed in the previous season’s European competitions, and the bids handed out to each country are determined by domestic league standings.—
Chris Vannini,
New York Times,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pecking order.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pecking%20order. Accessed 2 Jun. 2025.
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